Care ethics and nursing practice

Abstract

Care ethics, also known as ethics of care, is one lens with which to view ethics as applied to nursing and care more generally. The beginning of this particular approach to ethics as applied to care is attributed to the work of Carol Gilligan and Nel Noddings in the early 1980s. Care ethics has evolved primarily in North America and Europe with different strands and input from philosophers and social scientists. This chapter traces the development of care ethics, summarises key elements and focuses on the work of two theorists - Joan Tronto and Chris Gastmans - and the implications for nursing ethics. A short case study from an ethics education research project suggests the value of applying insights from care ethics to everyday practice situations. The strengths and limitations of care ethics are discussed and it will be concluded that, whilst care ethics makes a valuable contribution to ethics as applied to care, other perspectives enhance this approach.